Today’s MLB Opening Day is kicking off with a bang, as America’s favorite pastime flies high on the heels of the record-setting success of the World Baseball Classic. And as the season begins, brands are hoping to hit a home run with sponsorships that leverage the sport’s perennial popularity.
Last week, Booking.com announced it had signed on as MLB’s Official Online Travel Partner, with the mission to simplify the way Americans plan their baseball-inspired travels across the US. As part of the long term partnership, the company also became the presenting sponsor of the American and National League Division Series.
The offseason saw MLB ink an array of other new partnerships as well. Zoom became the league’s Official Unified Communications Platform and Presenting Partner of the MLB Replay Review on March 16th, in a groundbreaking deal designed to deliver unprecedented transparency to fans, and enhanced communication between umpires and league officials. Call-ins from the umpire will use Zoom Contact Center to power the Zoom Replay Operations Center, and be available to fans on national broadcasts, including MLB Network and Apple TV, to create a more engaging fan experience.
SeatGeek replaced StubHub as MLB’s official ticket marketplace on February 27th, following four other deals in the last four months with the Baltimore Ravens, Utah Jazz, Real Salt Lake, and United Soccer League. The partnership aims to make it easier than ever for fans to buy and sell tickets to league games on the secondary market, and scan directly into the ballpark.
MLB named FanDuel as its new Official Sports Betting Partner of MLB in North America in early March. The deal gives the gaming destination national broadcast integrations and expanded marketing rights, and customers the ability to watch and wager on games on FanDuel’s Sportsbook app, as well as its OTT platform, FanDuel+.
Meanwhile, tonight’s ESPN Opening Night Broadcasts will be presented by buzzy tequila brand Casamigos. Considering that tequila was the fastest growing alcohol subcategory last year (across Major Pro Sports) with a 66% increase in total deals–and MLB currently lacks a tequila sponsor–perhaps a Casamigos partnership is in the league’s future.
